CRACKED! A Broken Mirror Still Reflects!
by Fish
Summary: Breaking a mirror doesn't stop it from reflecting, or so Lina learns... Someone's after the Shadow Reflector! Will our heros get there in time, or will the world be overrun with lovable, cuddly Shadows? Tune in next time, or I'll have to hurt you!


Slayers belongs to Hajime Kanzaka, Rui Araizumi, Kadokawa Shoten, TV Tokyo and SoftX. TV Tokyo   
owns your soul. Submit. Submit. Submit. This fic was not written for profit.  
  
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Lina After defeating Darkstar, even the world's greatest, strongest, most brilliant, and most beautiful   
sorceress deserves a vacation! Knowing this, our hero, Lina Inverse, has declared holiday! And what's best   
about holidays? The food! That's right, we're going to spend the next four and a half days making   
appearances at all the finest restaurants in the city! Then we'll find the ritziest, most expensive hot springs   
resort in the area, and relax! And the best part is that Filia is going to pay for it all!  
  
Filia WHAT?! I thought I was finally rid of you guys!  
  
Lina Lina Inverse insists that Filia should accompany them to the onsen! Otherwise, she's going to inform   
a certain namagomi Mazoku that Filia is harboring a secret crush on him!  
  
Xellos Is that so?  
  
Filia THAT'S NOT TRUE! She made it up!  
  
Lina Anyway... along the way, we bumped into Sylphiel and invited her along with us, too. It's one great   
big reunion! However, we all know that adventure seems to insist upon following our heroes. Will we   
finally get a chance to relax? What crazy plots will spring up this time?   
  
  
CRACKED! A Broken Mirror Still Reflects!  
  
  
"Does this ever feel good!" Lina beamed, lowering herself into the steaming water of the bath. "A full belly,   
a hot bath… this is the life!"  
  
"I can't pay for this, Miss Lina," Filia fretted from her seat next to the sorceress. "I don't have a steady   
income anymore, and now I have a child to rear, and… you already made me pay for dinner!"  
  
"Mmm… dinner…" Lina's eyes glazed over. This evening's meal had been quite the affair, lasting near four   
hours. And at the speeds that Lina and Gourry ate, four hours was enough to destroy anyone's carefully   
constructed financial backup. "I can't wait until breakfast," she said, shivering happily.  
  
"Are you even listening to me?" The golden dragon's brow furrowed.  
  
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Well, how expensive is it to keep an egg?"  
  
"He won't be an egg forever," chimed in Amelia, who submerged herself further in the water until it nearly   
reached her nose.  
  
"That's right," Sylphiel said as she finished pinning up her hair and took a tentative step into the hot bath.   
"I'd imagine that feeding a growing young dragon could be rather expensive. Miss Filia has taken quite the   
task on her shoulders."   
  
"Couldn't possibly be more expensive than feeding Lina for the last few months," Filia muttered under her   
breath.   
  
"Alright, alright, you're off the hook, Filia," Lina conceded. The three other women sighed collectively,   
glad to have the problem solved.   
  
"We'll just have Amelia pay for it."  
  
The princess exploded in a sudden coughing fit, as a result of trying to suck in a breath to yell in protest   
while her mouth and nose were partially covered with water.  
  
"Now that that's settled," Lina said, ignoring the choking, sputtering Warrior of Justice, "I think I'm going   
to order some room service! I *love* vacations!"   
  
"Miss Amelia, are you alright?" Sylphiel asked. The youngest party member was beginning to turn slightly   
purple.  
  
Filia sighed, tuning out her companions and raising her eyes to the stars. At least Xellos couldn't bother her   
here. Just the mere thought of his name filled her with such a fury so real and extreme that it seemed he was   
sitting right next to her…  
  
"Shall I wash your back for you, Miss Lina?" asked the Mazoku as he materialized between the sorceress   
and the dragon.  
  
The four women screamed. In an area of seconds every one of them was out of the bath, clutching towels   
over themselves and realizing suddenly how very naked they were.   
  
Lina cast a glance at Filia. Under normal circumstances, she would have allowed the dragon the first assault   
on Xellos; however, Filia seemed to be hyperventilating and rapidly losing consciousness. Next to her,   
Amelia continued to hack and gasp, fighting with the water that she had inhaled, as Sylphiel attempted to   
calm and reassure the both of them while maximizing the space that her towel covered.   
  
Lina turned. "Dammit, Xellos, what the hell are you doing in the girl's bath?" she roared, stomping her foot   
indignantly.   
  
"Oh, is this the girl's bath?" He smiled pleasantly.   
  
"Of course it is, you baka! Go back to the men's side!"  
  
"Oh, but Miss Lina," Xellos pouted, "It's so uninteresting over there. Zelgadis just sits and glares at me,   
and Gourry's snoring is disturbing the peace."  
  
"I don't CARE! Get the hell out of here!"  
  
"Yareyare… I can tell when I'm not wanted. I'll be on my way, then." He rose up out of the water and   
began to climb the steps out of the bath.   
  
Four sets of feminine, thick-lashed eyes widened. Amelia fainted. "GET BACK IN THE WATER!" Lina   
screamed, blushing violently. Behind her, she could hear Filia's panicked panting forming into desperate,   
whispered words.   
  
Xellos cocked his head, the water lapping at his kneecaps. "Is there a problem?"  
  
Filia's muttering became more urgent, culminating in her voice ringing clearly through the crisp night air.   
"CHAOTIC DISINTEGRATE!"  
  
  
Lina blew her hair out of her eyes as she draped her cape over the back of a chair and collapsed on her bed.   
It was late; after Filia blew up a good quarter of their resort it had taken longer to bargain her way out of   
trouble than she thought it would. After that, she'd had to bribe the jailer to let Filia out. Her purse felt   
considerably lighter.   
  
"Damn you, Lina Inverse," she muttered, "Damn you for being such a generous, giving person!" A knock   
on her door made her jump. Frowning, she stood up. "Hello?"  
  
"Message for Miss Lina Inverse."  
  
"Great. Who wants money from me now?" She stomped to the door, opened it, and snatched the letter   
from the messenger's hands.   
  
"Have a nice evening, Miss," the delivery boy said as the door slammed in his face.  
  
Lina ripped the letter open. Her eyes widened slightly.   
  
  
"What do you mean, there are two of you?!" Filia asked, terrified.   
  
"I told you. She's nothing like me, but she's..."  
  
"Two Linas," Zelgadis muttered. "Cephied save us."  
  
"Hey! You're not listening to me!" Lina growled, standing up suddenly and knocking her chair over. She   
pounded on the table with her fist, causing the towers of breakfast dishes to rattle and tilt precariously.  
  
"Listening to what?" Zelgadis said. "So far, all you've told us is that you have a twin who's not really your   
twin, who is exactly like you but is nothing like you at all."  
  
Lina blinked.  
  
"You're not making much sense," the chimera prompted.  
  
"Alright, alright, I'll start from the beginning," Lina conceded. "Four hundred years ago, Shazard Rugandy   
made a magical artifact that would create an exact double of whoever was reflected in it. The reflection, or   
shadow, would have all the skills, memories, and abilities of the original, only the reversed personality. The   
idea was that, in battle, you could make skill-matched copies of your enemy to fight for you."  
  
"I've heard of that," Amelia interrupted. "The Shadow Reflector. But that's just a legend, isn't it?"  
  
Lina shook her head. "Oh, no, it's real. It's very real. Before I ever met up with Gourry, I had an   
encounter with it. I managed to break it, but not before I…" she swallowed hard, shivering involuntarily.   
"I…" Her voice lowered to a whisper. "It created my shadow."  
  
"Was she really that bad?" Sylphiel asked, her eyes wide with concern.  
  
"Oh, you have no idea," Lina said, her voice quivering. "She was… she was…"  
  
"The exact opposite of Lina," finished Xellos, appearing suddenly behind the redheaded sorceress. "Just   
imagine. A sweet, gentle, caring, giving, polite, considerate, peaceful Lina Inverse."  
  
"IT WAS HORRIBLE!" Lina lamented.  
  
"She sounds fine to me," Gourry offered.  
  
"SHUT UP!"  
  
"The Shadow Reflector exists, and works," Xellos continued, "but it would be of no use to those looking for   
help in battle. A shadow of a violent opponent would be friendly and, as a result, completely useless."  
  
"Why are you suddenly bringing this up?" Zelgadis asked. "In the three years I've known you, you've never   
mentioned your shadow. If you broke the mirror and your shadow is missing, then why are you suddenly   
confessing this to us?"  
  
Lina didn't speak, just shuddered and studied her hands. Xellos smiled knowingly at the group. "Breaking a   
mirror doesn't stop it from reflecting, does it, Miss Lina?" he said.  
  
"I hid the fragments in a cavern, far out of the way in the wilderness," Lina mumbled quietly, continuing to   
stare at the ground. "I told nobody of its whereabouts. I sure as hell didn't want anyone making more   
shadows. There's only one other person who knows the location of the fragments of the Shadow Reflector.   
I thought the secret would be safe with her, but I guess I was wrong."   
  
"So someone is after the mirror's fragments," Filia said. "But why?"  
  
"I don't know!" Lina barked. "The point is, we have to stop them! If they find even one piece of that   
mirror, they could create an entire ARMY of peaceful, lovable shadows!" She began to twitch.   
  
"That still doesn't sound too bad to me," Gourry said, picking his teeth.  
  
"Shut up, sautéed leeks-for-brains." Lina turned to her companions. "Anyway, we're going to have to cut   
this vacation short."  
  
"How do you know it's not a prank, though?" Zelgadis seemed quite set on finding a flaw in Lina's logic.  
  
"I don't want to take the chance of it not being a prank. You have no idea how terrible this is. Come on, I   
need your help!"  
  
"Why can't you go on your own?"  
  
"The cave is really, really big, and the pieces are all spread out. I can't get them all in time!"  
  
Zelgadis stood. "I'm not going. I agreed to come on this little vacation of yours, but I'm not going to   
waste my time chasing after broken glass." He stood, pushing his chair back.  
  
"You know, in the mirror dimension, you may not be cursed."  
  
Zelgadis, who had been heading for the door, stopped in his tracks.  
  
"And, with the right spells, there might be a chance of finding a way to project the curseless shadow over   
into this world, and transferring…"  
  
Zelgadis sighed. "Alright, fine."  
  
"Great!" Lina beamed. "So you're all with me!"  
  
"But I have to get back to my shop," Filia said, biting her lip. "Baby Val might need me."  
  
An evil glint played in Lina's eyes. "Oh, Xeeeellooos…"  
  
"Yes?" the Mazoku smiled.  
  
"ALRIGHT! Fine! I'll do it!" the golden dragon yelped.  
  
"Then it's settled," Lina grinned. "We leave after lunch!"  
  
  
"ECHO!"  
  
Echo! Echo! Echo!  
  
"ECHO!"   
  
Echo! Echo! Echo!  
  
"Xellos, if you do that one more time I'm going to snap!"  
  
Going to snap! Going to snap! Going to snap!  
  
"Do what, Filia? You mean, shout, 'ECHO'?"  
  
Echo! Echo! Echo!  
  
Filia growled. "Why are you still here, anyway?"  
  
Xellos disappeared and reappeared right in front of the dragon, his nose only inches away from hers. "Why,   
I'm here to bother you, of course!" He disappeared again, narrowly avoiding the swing of Filia's mace.  
  
"You're doing an excellent job of it," Zelgadis growled dryly as Xellos popped back into existence next to   
him.  
  
"Hurry up," called Amelia from ahead. "There's no time to lose! We must hurry on for the cause of—  
OOF!"   
  
Zelgadis helped the girl up. "Really, Amelia, you should watch where you're stepping while you make your   
justice speeches."  
  
Filia squinted at the map of the tunnels. "Alright, it branches off again up ahead. That means we have to   
split up further." The princess, chimera, Mazoku, and dragon came to a halt as the cave split in three   
directions. "I guess I'll go right," she said, glancing at the tunnel.  
  
"Right! I, Amelia wil Tesla Seiyruun, shall take the middle tunnel!"  
  
"That leaves me with the left one," Zelgadis said. "Remember, don't look into the mirrors. The last thing   
we need are shadows of ourselves."  
  
Amelia nodded. "Mister. Xellos, where will you… Mister Xellos? Where'd he go?"  
  
"Good riddance," muttered Filia as she started down her tunnel.  
  
"I'm sure he's off causing a war or genocide or something. Just what he normally does," Zelgadis muttered.   
He started down the left tunnel. "Be careful, Amelia. Don't forget to watch where you walk."  
  
The princess blushed a bit, watching as the chimera disappeared into the darkness. Once he was out of   
sight, she struck a pose. "Fearing nothing, our brave heroine sets off on the path of Justice! She knows not   
what lies around the next bend, save for adventure; and thus she forges onwa—OOF!"  
  
"I told you!" echoed Zelgadis' faint voice from far down the left tunnel.   
  
  
Lina swore as she hit her head for what seemed like the millionth time. She cringed as she rubbed the   
growing welt on her head, cursing the cave and the goddamned stalactites that kept jumping out of nowhere   
to crack her in the skull. It being her time of the month, she was forced to use the conventional burning   
torch, something she was very unused to. The little light it afforded allowed the rock formations an   
advantage over her.   
  
"Oi, Lina, you okay?"  
  
"Yeah, Gourry, I'm fine," the sorceress growled. "Come on, hurry up."  
  
"Miss Lina," Sylphiel called from behind Gourry. "Please be careful. You might hit your head again."  
  
"I'm not gonna hit my head again," Lina snapped. "Now hurry up—ow! Sonofa…"  
  
"Oi, Lina, you okay?"  
  
Lina's eye twitched slightly. "Yes," she hissed. "I'm FINE." She started walking again, this time a bit   
slower, glaring viciously at every bit of rock she passed, lest it jump out and hit her. After a while, Sylphiel   
fell into step next to her.  
  
"Miss Lina," the shrine maiden began, "Whatever happened to your shadow? You didn't say."  
  
"I didn't say, because I don't know," Lina answered. "I had things to do, and she kept trying to conform me   
to nonviolence, so I just left."  
  
"Oh," Sylphiel said, glancing at Lina nervously. "Do you think that was wise, if she was so helpless?"  
  
Lina shrugged. "It was either that, or I sell her to the circus. Which do you think was the smartest   
decision?" She frowned at the small map she was carrying, squinting to make out the words in the dim light.   
  
"I believe there's a fork up ahead," said a voice from over her shoulder. Lina jumped, smacking the top of   
her skull on a stalactite that hung several inches above her head. She swore again.  
  
"Oi, Lina, you o…"  
  
"I'M FINE, GOURRY!" She turned to her assailant. "Dammit, Xellos, don't sneak up on me like that!"   
  
"I'm sorry, Miss Lina, did I startle you?" the Mazoku smiled innocently.   
  
Lina glared at him for a moment before returning to her map. "You're right, though. There *is* a fork just   
ahead. We're going to have to split off again." She looked at her human companions. "You two wanna go   
right, and I'll go left?"  
  
"But Lina," protested Gourry, "You can't use your magic. I have to go with you."  
  
Lina flushed. "I'll be fine," she mumbled.  
  
"But you said that it was your time of the…"  
  
"REALLY, Gourry, I'll be FINE."  
  
"Miss Lina, if it's your… if you can't use magic," Sylphiel interrupted, "I really do think Gourry dear should   
go with you. It's much safer."  
  
"Not to mention more fun for me," Xellos grinned. He cocked his head as all three humans turned to stare   
at him oddly. "What?" he asked, blinking innocently.  
  
"…anyway, Gourry should go with you, Sylphiel."  
  
"I insist, Miss Lina, he should go with you."  
  
"Really, I think you two should…"  
  
"But it would be safer if…"  
  
"Oh, for Cephied's sake, just go already!"  
  
"No, Miss Lina, I insist. Please."  
  
Lina sighed. "Fine," she said. "See you later, Sylphiel." She grabbed Gourry by the elbow and began   
dragging him down the right tunnel.  
  
*Crack!*  
  
"Oi, Lina, you…"  
  
"FIREBALL!"  
  
"I believe there's a reason why women were created unable to use magic during menstruation," Xellos said   
thoughtfully. Sylphiel blushed.   
  
  
Amelia shuffled nervously down the cramped tunnel. It was dark and claustrophobic, and a cold breeze   
trickled past her, lifting the little hairs on her arms. She shivered. It was just too dreary in this place. The   
girl's eyes widened as a thought came to her. This problem was easily resolved! "Ah-ha!" she shouted,   
flashing a victory sign and a grin at nobody in particular. She straightened up and took a deep breath.  
  
"Koi ni koi suru onna no ko ni wa  
Mabushisugiru no MY DARLING!"  
  
Amelia smiled to herself as the cheery lyrics reflected off the stone walls and echoed back at her.  
  
"Oi, Amelia!"  
  
"Mister. Zelgadis?"  
  
"I can hear you… our tunnels must be connected somewhere."  
  
Amelia brushed up against the wall, and cringed as she touched something wet and slimy. "Is your tunnel   
wet and cold and creepy?"  
  
"Well, what did you expect a cave to be like?" Zelgadis sighed. "I have this feeling that this is going to be   
one of our more unpleasant adventures."  
  
"Cheer up, Mister. Zelgadis!" Amelia cried. "Things have been much worse than this!"  
  
"They have?"  
  
"Yeah! Remember that one time, when we were on the boat, and we needed an anchor…"  
  
"…yeah…"  
  
"And we had to use you instead? And then your breathing tube disconnected, so you didn't have any air?   
And then…"  
  
"…yes, I remember…"  
  
"…Mister. Ashford said you looked like his wife? And then you got covered with barnacles? And then   
there was that one time when we were in the city where men weren't allowed…"  
  
"Yes, Amelia, I…"  
  
"…and you had to dress up as a girl, and then…"  
  
"Okay, okay, you win!"  
  
There was a moment's silence. Amelia could hear water dripping somewhere. The wind picked up for a   
moment, moaning quietly in the distance. The princess shivered again. "Mister Zelgadis?"  
  
"Hai, Amelia?"  
  
"Will you sing with me?" Silence. She could almost hear Zelgadis rolling his eyes at her. "Please?" she   
added.  
  
"…Alright, sure."  
  
  
Sylphiel cast a furtive glance at the dark shadow that was following a few steps behind her. In this light   
Xellos looked sinister, even though he was grinning. Then again, Xellos was almost always grinning, and he   
almost always looked sinister. She bit her lip, trying to determine if it was more polite to stare at him or   
ignore him entirely. She tried to think of a topic for conversation, but for some reason she couldn't think of   
anything that they would both be interested in. She gritted her teeth.  
  
"So, Mister. Xellos, do you have any hobbies?" She hoped her voice didn't betray her nervousness.  
  
"Hobbies?" Xellos asked, stepping up next to the shrine maiden with one eyebrow cocked.  
  
"Yes. You know, things you like to do in your spare time, for fun…"  
  
"Ah, I know what a hobby is, Miss Sylphiel. I simply find this an odd question for one to ask a Mazoku.   
Especially if one has a weak stomach."  
  
"Never mind," the young woman said timidly. She resumed staring ahead of her down the cold, dark path.   
She wreaked her brain for possible topics for discussion, for something to break this terribly awkward   
silence. After a moment she gathered enough courage to speak again.  
  
"So you're interested in cooking, Mister Xellos?" The wind picked up a little. Sylphiel turned around,   
frowning. "Mister Xellos?" Nothing. Her companion gone, the woman felt quite lonely. She would have   
to go on without him; he couldn't have gotten lost. She shouldn't worry, she decided. She didn't know   
Xellos well, but she did know that he had the terrible habit of appearing and disappearing whenever he felt   
like it, often leaving his fellow travelers in rather desperate situations.  
  
Calming her nerves, Sylphiel returned to her lonesome trek, following the cave around a bend. The narrow   
tunnel opened out into a small, stale cavern. The girl commanded her lighting spell higher. The shadows   
receded, revealing...  
  
Sylphiel bit her lip. By all appearances, the cavern was completely empty. She couldn't have taken a wrong   
turn; Lina had told her that there were no other tunnels branching off from the one she had followed.   
  
The mirror fragment had to be here somewhere. Lina said that each significant piece had been left in a small   
chest, and each chest at the end of a different tunnel. Sylphiel's would be the easiest to find, Lina had added,   
as her tunnel didn't connect with any others. A few hesitant steps further into the cavern dissolved more   
shadows, revealing a small, beaten wooden box.  
  
"There you are!" she smiled, lifting the chest. Perhaps for once the gods had decided to toss them a problem   
easily solved.  
  
"Oi, Miss Sylphiel, look what I found!" Sylphiel jumped at the voice, spinning in a half-circle to face the   
Mazoku who had so unexpectedly materialized behind her.  
  
She turned, and met her reflection in a jagged piece of glass mirror. Xellos smiled at her from behind the   
glass, his eyes squeezed into crescents. One violet eye cracked open, winking at her, and then he   
disappeared. The mirror departed with him.   
  
"Oh, no," the shrine maiden whispered. "He wouldn't!" She dropped to her knees, fumbling with the latch   
on the chest.   
  
The box was empty.   
  
"Ohhh," Sylphiel moaned, cringing. "Miss Lina's going to be mad!"  
  
  
At the end of a tunnel, the air crackled for a moment. Black static quickly took the form of a man, who   
alighted gently on the cold ground, holding out in front of him a bit of broken mirror. After a few seconds in   
this pose, the glass began to glow, and then spewed forth a column of sinister, black smoke. As the last   
tendrils of gas trickled from the mirror, Xellos disappeared again, leaving the newly created feminine form   
shrouded in clouds of darkness  
  
  
Zelgadis shook his head, sighing, as Amelia started the song for the third time. He joined in now and then,   
when he knew the words, just to placate the girl. How could he turn her down when she was so easy to   
please? Her voice echoed through the tunnels, melodic and chirping over his inexpressive monotone.   
Zelgadis believed he couldn't sing, but he sang anyway. "Kirakira RUUJU, PINKU no PIICHI…"  
  
"You know, I've never thought of you like that. With a bit of rouge and lipstick, you'd be quite lovely."  
  
"What are you doing here, Xellos?" the chimera growled, abandoning the song.   
  
"Oh, not much," the priest said pleasantly. "Just dropping in to check on your progress."  
  
"I'm doing fine. Now go away."  
  
"So temperamental, Zelgadis," the Mazoku smiled, wagging his finger in Zelgadis' face. "Perhaps it's your   
time of the month, too?"  
  
Glaring, Zelgadis pushed past his antagonist. "If you'll excuse me, Xellos, I have to find this mirror before   
whoever else is looking for it does. I don't need your help." He began to stalk away.  
  
"Alright," Xellos called after him. "We'll just wait for you here, then."  
  
We? He was more than one person now? Zelgadis shrugged it off, deciding it wasn't worth humoring the   
monster by asking what he meant. Not bothering to look back, the Chimera didn't notice the uncommonly   
large grin on Xellos' face, or unnatural glow that the mirror the Mazoku held was producing.  
  
  
"Careful, Lina, there's a rock over there."  
  
Lina rolled her eyes, cringing. In order to save her from hitting her head again, Gourry had begun warning   
her of approaching rocks. In a cave. In a cave, made of rocks.   
  
"There's one over there, too."  
  
"Yes, Gourry, I can see it."  
  
"And there's one behind you, look out!"  
  
"I know, I already passed it."  
  
"But you could still fall on it! There's a rock over here, too."  
  
"Yes, Gourry…"  
  
"But this one's pointy."  
  
"Yeah, they're called stalactites."  
  
"Oh. There's a stalactite right in front of you, Lina!"  
  
"No, that one's a stalagmite."  
  
"I thought you said the pointy ones were called…"  
  
"They're all rocks! Just rocks!"  
  
"Oh, okay. Hey, Lina, look out, there's a rock right there!"  
  
"YES, GOURRY! I SEE THE ROCK! Stop warning me, I can—ACK!"  
  
"Look out, Lina, there's a rock right there," Gourry pointed out.  
  
"I KNOW, I JUST WALKED INTO IT!"  
  
"You should be more careful, you know…"  
  
Lina grit her teeth. "Let's talk about something else now, alright?"  
  
"Oh. Okay." The swordsman was quiet for a moment, walking in silence. "Oi, Lina, what was your   
shadow like?"  
  
"Evil. Pure, unadulterated evil."  
  
There was another pause. "Was she pretty?"  
  
"WHAT KIND OF A QUESTION IS THAT?!"  
  
Gourry swallowed. "I don't know… it was just a question…"  
  
Lina glared at the blonde, seething. Gourry shrank back, praying that he didn't incite her further wrath.  
  
After a moment, Lina spoke. "Do you think *I'm* pretty?"  
  
Say yes! Say yes, you imbecile! She's going to KILL you! "Uh… I… I dunno…" he sputtered.  
  
Lina's eyes exploded with fire. "You don't KNOW? YOU DON'T KNOW? YOU…"  
  
"Oi, Sylphiel, what are you doing here?"  
  
The violet-haired shrine maiden smirked, her eyes flashing red.   
  
  
Amelia frowned briefly as Zelgadis' voice faded out. He'd probably just left hearing range, she was sure he   
was all right. It was sure nice of him to sing with me, she thought, smiling again. She felt really   
confident now, knowing that he was near. The princess continued on her way, skipping a little bit,   
increasing the volume of her song.  
  
"Zembu agechau kirei na watashi  
Shiroi PEGASASU ni omoi nosete  
Todoketai no Koi no JIGUSOO RASUTO PIISU!"  
  
"How very poetic, Miss Amelia."  
  
"Hi, Mister. Xellos! Where'd you go before?"  
  
"I went to keep Miss Sylphiel company," the trickster smiled as he fell into step next to the girl.   
  
"Oh, that was nice of you!" Something caught the girl's eye, and she blinked. "What's that you're holding,   
Mister. Xellos?"  
  
"Hmm? Oh, come now, Amelia, after two years you know the answer to that as well as I do." He tucked   
the shiny, irregularly shaped piece of flattened glass into a pocket.  
  
"It's a secret?"  
  
"Hai. I believe we turn left up here."  
  
Amelia nodded, consulting the map Lina had provided. "Yep! We're almost there." She struck a pose. "In   
the name of Justice, we hasten towards our goal, in pursuit of the safety of the universe and the preservation   
of the wonder that is life itself! For every happy child, for every fluffy bunny, for every butterfly resting on   
an open flower blossom, I, Amelia wil Tesla Seiyruun, shall fight to the very end!"  
  
Xellos shuddered. "Could you please not do that when I'm around?" he asked, swallowing back the bile   
burning in his throat.  
  
"Er, sorry." Amelia resumed her skipping, humming softly. The end of the tunnel approached quickly, and   
Amelia slowed. "That was easy enough," she said, locating the chest. "Well, let's get going!"  
  
"Wait!" Xellos cried. "We should check to make sure it's in there first!"  
  
Amelia blinked. "But Miss Lina said not to open the chest, because we might accidentally look in the mirror   
and make a shadow."  
  
"But if it's not in the chest, we'll have to come all the way back down this tunnel and find it," Xellos said,   
pasting on the most concerned, sincere face he could muster, knowing Amelia would buy it.  
  
Amelia hmm'ed in thought, placing a finger on her lip. "But it's not safe, Mister. Xellos… we could get in   
trouble!"  
  
"We could get in even bigger trouble if we don't," he said. "One quick little look's not going to hurt   
anyone."  
  
Amelia fell silent, her brow knit in thought, debating what to do. Xellos took advantage of the pause and   
pried open the latch, lifting the lid…  
  
"NO!" Amelia launched herself into the air, landing on the top rim of the chest's opened lid and striking a   
dramatic pose. "Mister Xellos, we cannot! The fate of the world depends on our own self-discipline! We   
must not look!"  
  
Xellos sighed, slipping the fragment of mirror out of his cloak pocket. Fine, then, he'd do it the difficult   
way…  
  
"We must fight our most basic urges, for we… woah… woah, tipping, tipping…" Amelia teetered   
precariously as the weak, aged hinges of the chest began to rattle.   
  
"Ano… perhaps you should get down from there, Miss Amelia," Xellos cautioned, keeping his mirror   
hidden behind a fold in his cape.  
  
"I'm fine, I'm… woah… woah… no, I'm… ACK!" The hinges gave out, the chest tipping forward, sending   
its contents flying up towards the ceiling of the cavern. Amelia went flying, too, twisting, arcing elegantly,   
and crashing into Xellos. The priest keeled backward under the unexpected weight and landed on his back.   
The mirror he had been holding clattered gently to the ground, landing next to his head…  
  
In the perfect position to reflect Amelia's face right back up at her.  
  
"That worked out well," Xellos commented from underneath the princess. "Now, if you'll just…" The   
Mazoku's eyes widened slightly as he saw something shiny falling rapidly towards his face.   
  
Amelia swallowed as her mirror began to glow. "Miss Lina is going to be really, really mad."  
  
Xellos cringed as the mirror from the chest, flung into the air by Amelia's fall, smacked him flat in the   
forehead. It rested there, perfectly content. "Yareyare," he sighed. "This is going to be bad."  
  
Amelia's mirror began to pour out black smoke. After a few seconds, Xellos' mirror followed suit.   
  
"Well, look at the time," the Mazoku said, struggling to his feet and brushing some dust off of his cape. The   
mirror clattered to the floor. "Gotta get going. Bai!" He disappeared in a flicker of black.  
  
Amelia whimpered.   
  
  
"Sylphiel? What are you doing here?" Lina repeated. "Aren't you supposed to be finding a mirror?"  
  
"Yeah," Shadow Sylphiel muttered, her eyes locking onto Gourry, "Yeah, don' worry. 'S taken care of."   
A very un-Sylphiel-like half-smirk twisted the girl's mouth, her eyes still latched on the clueless blonde.   
  
Lina raised an eyebrow. This was odd… but now was not the time to baffle at sudden personality changes   
in her friends. She had to get to that mirror fragment, and fast. Whoever was after the Shadow Reflector,   
and whatever his or her motives were, they must not be allowed to bring this atrocity to the public's eye.   
The mirror was a travesty, a monstrosity. An icy cold gripped the sorceress as she imagined the horrors that   
this creation could bring to the world. Shadow Naga and me were bad enough, but if there was a Shadow   
Luna… This had to be stopped.   
  
"You got your mirror?" Lina asked the pseudo-Sylphiel, choosing to ignore the lusty glances the girl was   
tossing in Gourry's direction.  
  
Momentarily distracted from her prey, Shadow Sylphiel smirked at Lina. "Trust me," she said, simply.  
  
Taking this as an affirmative, Lina nodded. "Alright, then let's go," she called over her shoulder as she   
began to run along the tunnel.  
  
"Oi, Lina, there's a rock over there!" Gourry called, chasing after the redhead.  
  
"Wait, Gourry!" Shadow Sylphiel yelped, leaping towards the swordsman.   
  
"Huh? What's wrong, Sylphiel?"  
  
"I… I hurt my foot," the reflection lied. "Could you carry me?"   
  
Gourry blinked. "Oh. Sure!"  
  
"Hey, hurry UP!" Lina's growl echoed off the low ceilings of the cave.   
  
"Coming, coming," the shadow mumbled as she climbed onto Gourry's back. "Don't get your panties in a   
knot."  
  
  
Amelia coughed as the impenetrable black smoke filled the small cavern. Her eyes began to water from the   
stench of the smog; it wasn't the smell of fire that scratched her lungs, but the sinister, pinching smell of   
brimstone.  
  
"Mister Xellos?" she called helplessly. "Are you still here?"  
  
"Miss Amelia? Miss Amelia, where are you?" He sounded worried.  
  
"I'm over here!"  
  
"What do we do? What should I do? I can't see! I'm blind! I'M BLIND!"  
  
Amelia choked on the dry, cloudy air and made her way towards Xellos' panicked voice. She groped her   
way blindly across the small room, until she bumped into a tall, cloaked, staff-wielding figure.  
  
"Who's there? Don't hurt me!" it whimpered.  
  
"It's just me," the princess soothed. The clouds of foul black smoke began to dissipate.   
  
"MISS AMELIA!" the figure cried, glomping onto her tightly and nearly knocking her down. "Miss Amelia,   
I'm blind! I can't see! What am I going do if I can't see? I don't want to be blind!"  
  
Amelia waved away the last tendrils of smoke and coughing again. "Maybe you should open your eyes," she   
rasped. "I always wondered how you could see with your eyes like that, anyway."  
  
"Huh?" One eye cracked open. The priest's face flooded with relief, and his second eye popped open, too.   
"Miss Amelia! You've saved me!" he rejoiced, hugging the girl tightly, bouncing up and down.   
  
"Ano… Mister. Xellos? You're squishing me."   
  
"Oh! I'm sorry," the figure blushed and dropped the girl back onto the ground, biting his lip, fidgeting.  
  
Amelia frowned. "Wait a minute…" her brow furrowed. "Mister Xellos *left*… I saw him!" She leapt to   
her feet, pointing to the intruder. "You're not Mister Xellos! You're an imposter!"  
  
Shadow Xellos swallowed hard.   
  
"Took you long enough, genius," grumbled a voice from behind Amelia. The princess jumped, spinning   
around.   
  
"Who's there?" Amelia shouted.  
  
Shadow Amelia rolled her eyes. "Ruby-Eye himself," the phantom stood up, brushing soot off of her   
clothes. "Who do you think it is?"  
  
"Miss Amelia," Shadow Xellos gasped, his eyes wide. "There are two of you!"  
  
"Gee, aren't you observant."  
  
"Don't be fooled, Mister... er… Mister Not-Xellos. She's just a reflection of me," the real Amelia   
explained.  
  
Shadow Xellos' eyes widened further. "I don't like her. She's scary."  
  
Amelia's reflection glowered, folding her arms.   
  
"She looks mean," continued the false Xellos, clutching his staff.  
  
"Shadow me, be nice to Shadow Xellos," Amelia chided. "Now, where did those mirror fragments go?"   
She stooped over, searching for the broken pieces of glass.  
  
"Miss Amelia!" Shadow Xellos called, bending over. "Here's one!"  
  
"YOINK!" yelled Amelia's shadow, snatching Shadow Xellos' staff. She took off at a dead run down the   
tunnel.  
  
"HEY! THAT'S MINE!" Shadow Xellos whined, flailing after her. "Give it back!"  
  
"Wait, you two!" Amelia cried, clumsily collecting the two mirrors and stumbling after the shadows.   
"You'll get lost!"  
  
"Screw you!" her shadow called back. "I'm outta here!"  
  
  
"Lina-chan," said Shadow Luna in Lina's horrible, horrible daydream, "I need a hug!"  
  
"Oi, Sylphiel, would you stop moving around like that? It's hard for me to walk."  
  
"Lina-chan, let me fix your hair up today. I'll go get the pink ribbons!" Shadow Luna offered.   
  
Shadow Sylphiel squirmed a bit more, nearly knocking Gourry off his feet. "Ooh, but Gourry, it feels so   
*nice*…"  
  
"Lina-chan," Shadow Luna continued in Lina's terrible fantasy, "I found this baby bunny! Isn't he kawaii? I   
shall call him Nummy-Muffin Coocol-Butter! Would you like to snuggle him?" Lina forged around a   
corner blindly, the daydream giving her goosebumps and occupying every functional part of her brain. She   
began to shiver uncontrollably.   
  
Gourry staggered under Shadow Sylphiel's shifting weight, grunting. He wished she would stop struggling   
around like that, and wondered what she was doing up there.  
  
"Mmm," Shadow Sylphiel cooed, "Forge onward, noble beast…"  
  
"Um… okay." Gourry was becoming rather confused. Sylphiel was acting rather oddly…  
  
"Yes! Faster!"   
  
Very oddly, in fact.   
  
"Faster! Faster!"   
  
"I'm going, I'm going!" Gourry began to run faster.  
  
"Lina-chan," said Lina's imaginary Shadow Luna, "Would you like to make cookies with me?"  
  
"FASTER!"   
  
"I'm running as fast as I can," Gourry whimpered.  
  
"Lina-chan, I bought you this lovely pink dress! Here, let me get your stockings for you. Would you like to   
borrow my nice shoes? I've got…"  
  
"STOP!" Lina screamed, stopping suddenly and clutching her head.   
  
Gourry skidded to a stop, the false Sylphiel's squirming sending him off-balance. He struggled to stay on   
his feet. He teetered on his toes, his arms flailing.   
  
"Don't stop!" begged Sylphiel's reflection. "Keep going!"  
  
"Make it stop! Make it stop!" Lina whimpered.   
  
"Go! Go!" Shadow Sylphiel bucked her hips forward, destroying what little balance Gourry had. He   
clattered to the floor, landing on a rather uncomfortable and extremely conveniently placed chest.  
  
Lina snapped back to life, the image of a Shadow Luna fading away. "Gourry?"  
  
"Itai…"  
  
"Get up!" Sylphiel's shadow commanded.   
  
"I can't," Gourry moaned. "You're sitting on me. Can't… breathe…"  
  
Lina shook her head, chasing off the last remnants of her daydream, and knocked the false Sylphiel off of   
Gourry. The girl landed unceremoniously on her back, her legs askew. She seemed to be panting. Lina   
squinted at her critically.   
  
"Oi, Lina," Gourry grunted, "I found something."  
  
"Huh?" Lina's attention shifted from the suspicious shrine maiden to her blonde companion. "What? Where   
is it?"  
  
"I'm laying on it," he wheezed.   
  
"Well, give it to me!"  
  
"I can't move… can't breathe… wind knocked out of… OOF!" Gourry flopped forward as Lina tugged the   
chest out from under him. He landed on his face, groaning.   
  
"This is it! We found it before it was too late… alright, let's go find the others! Here, Gourry, carry this!"   
The sorceress shoved the chest into the swordsman's hands as he pulled himself to his feet. Gourry sighed   
and began lugging the chest back along the path.   
  
"Wait!" Shadow Sylphiel yelled, scrambling to her feet. "Carry me!" She launched herself at Gourry,   
latching onto his back. Already disoriented from his previous fall, Gourry was knocked forward. The chest   
clattered to the ground in front of him, the rusted latch springing open.  
  
"DON'T LOOK! DON'T OPEN YOUR EYES, GOURRY! WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T LOOK!"   
Lina panicked.  
  
"Ooh… shiny…" the semi-conscious Gourry remarked of the simple fragment of glass inside the chest. His   
eyes fluttered shut a second later, not noticing the evil glow the mirror was producing.   
  
"I wanted to ride," Shadow Sylphiel complained. "Get up, come on!"  
  
  
Xellos took a deep breath as he materialized in an empty tunnel deep in the cave. Okay, so he'd made a   
shadow of himself… it was bad, but it couldn't be that terrible. Where he was strong and unafraid, the   
shadow would be weak and submissive. He could destroy it if need be; it certainly wouldn't be willing to   
aide him as the other shadows would. He shuddered a little, imagining how horrible a reflection made in his   
image would be. Like Amelia, only… nicer. Happier. Friendlier. It made him nauseous.   
  
Pulling himself back together and pushing the evil thoughts out of his mind, Xellos steeled himself. He had   
an itinerary, he didn't have time to waste. He closed his eyes, flickering out of reality and popping back into   
a torch-lit cavern.  
  
"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU, GOURRY! How could you be so STUPID? I TOLD you not to LOOK!"  
  
"I'm sorry, Lina," Gourry said, waving the dark smoke that was beginning to cloud the room away from his   
face. "I didn't mean to!"  
  
"Hey there," Shadow Sylphiel grinned, spotting the Mazoku. She began to prowl towards him, licking her   
teeth.   
  
Xellos blinked at the shadow, then at Lina strangling Gourry, then at the mirror belching inky clouds into the   
cavern.  
  
"I see that my work here is done," he smiled. "Don't mind me."   
  
"Wait! Come back!" Shadow Sylphiel yelped, leaping at the empty space that had held the Mazoku.  
  
As he retreated into subspace, he allowed himself a small, genuine smile, so unlike the moronic grin he   
usually wore. He could feel the angst and frustration from every person and their shadow… And he was   
just getting to the fun part.  
  
He blinked, and appeared in another tunnel, taking another deep breath.  
  
"ECHO!" he hollered.  
  
Echo! Echo! Echo!  
  
  
"Give it back! Give it back! This isn't fair! HEY!"   
  
Shadow Amelia paused to stick her tongue out and pull her bottom eyelid down, then resumed darting   
through the dark tunnels.  
  
Shadow Xellos stumbled. "Wait, Miss Shadow Amelia! Can't we be friends? Why do you have to be so   
mean?!"  
  
From further down the dark tunnel, Shadow Amelia responded with a string of words that would have   
stunned any healthy, evil Mazoku.   
  
"With a donkey?" Shadow Xellos repeated, wide-eyed.  
  
"Shadow Xellos? Shadow Me? Where are you?" the real Amelia's voice echoed from far down tunnel.  
  
"Turn down the left fork!" called Shadow Amelia, pausing for a moment in her sprint.   
  
"But we went right," Shadow Xellos corrected. "Shouldn't we tell her the right directions? HEY! Wait up!   
No fair!"  
  
  
Lina coughed as the smoke began to clear. She could make out the form of Gourry's shadow in the clouds.   
It couldn't be too bad… an intelligent Gourry? A bright, charming, Gourry… no, this wouldn't be bad at   
all. She absently patted her hair into place. Being brighter than Gourry, Shadow Gourry would undoubtedly   
be immediately taken with her good looks, petite stature, perfect posture, and girlish charm.  
  
As the pollution began to drift away, Gourry's double rubbed its eyes. "What was that?"   
  
"Ooh…" Shadow Sylphiel grinned ferally, "Two of them!"  
  
Shadow Gourry blinked. "Two of who?"  
  
"Two of you!"  
  
"Two of me?" Shadow Gourry asked.  
  
"Two of us?" the original Gourry cocked his head.  
  
Lina experienced a sudden feeling very akin to what she might have felt if she was falling very, very quickly   
into an abysmal pit. The two Gourrys finally noticed each other.  
  
"Oi," Gourry said, "You look just like me!"  
  
"Yeah!" Shadow Gourry replied. "Oi, maybe we're brothers!"  
  
"I don't think I have a brother."  
  
"I don't think I did, either." Both Gourrys lost themselves in thought. After a few seconds, they began to   
sweat with the effort.  
  
"I don't really remember," Shadow Gourry admitted.  
  
"Neither do I!" laughed Gourry, tucking a hand behind his head. His double laughed with him.  
  
Lina wailed. "Sweet Cephied, you're too dumb to make a shadow without screwing it up!"  
  
"I don't mind," Shadow Sylphiel purred, strategically placing herself between the two men.   
  
"Er, sorry, Lina," Gourry sweatdropped.  
  
"Yeah, sorry."  
  
Lina rolled her eyes. "Come on," she muttered, her head hanging low. "Let's go."   
  
  
"ECHO!"  
  
Echo! Echo! Echo!  
  
"EEECHO!"  
  
Eeecho! Eeecho! Eeecho!  
  
"NAMAGOMI!"  
  
Namagomi! Namagomi! Namagomi!  
  
Xellos grinned as the reply rang through the tunnel. "Come out, come out, wherever you are, Filia!"  
  
"Go away, Xellos!"   
  
The Mazoku phased further down the tunnel and peered around a corner. Filia stood, a lighting spell raised   
high in the air, eyes darting from one dark corner to another, attempting to locate the source of her anger.   
She backed slowly away from the tunnel entrance, where Xellos stood concealed in the darkness.  
  
He grinned, phasing behind her. This was just too simple.  
  
"W…where are you?" the girl asked, trying to sound vicious. Xellos could feel her fear: not terror, but a   
nervousness tinged with a hint of anger that tasted simply divine.  
  
"Where are you?!" Filia demanded again as her question went unanswered. She paused in her backward   
walk only inches from Xellos, searching the tunnel.  
  
Leaning forward, Xellos whispered in the Ryuuzoku's ear. "I'm right behind you."  
  
"ACK!" Xellos disappeared just in time to avoid a very enthusiastic swing of Filia's mace. He reappeared,   
behind her again.  
  
"Now, now, Filia, that's no way to greet someone!"  
  
"You! You…" Filia panted, fighting her heart rate back to normal, "You… NAMAGOMI!"  
  
Namagomi! Namagomi! Namagomi!  
  
Xellos cringed, then smiled infuriatingly. "It's not nice to call names, Filia."  
  
Filia gritted her teeth hard as she fought to regain her composure. Unable to come up with an appropriate   
reply, she growled and brushed past the Mazoku, setting herself to the task of ignoring him.   
  
Xellos turned and followed her, falling into step next to her. She growled again and walked faster. Xellos   
stepped up, pleased that she was so easy to frustrate. He could feel anger radiating off of her like heat.  
  
"Go away!" she snapped again.  
  
"I'm just here to help you," Xellos smiled, infusing his voice with a sickening innocence.  
  
"Ha!" Filia shouted. "You're probably here to cause trouble, like you always are! Now, leave me alone."  
  
"Are you sure?" he raised an eyebrow, opening one violet eye. "There could be all manners of vicious,   
deviant and dangerous beasts down here. Tell me, Filia, have you ever met a cave worm?"  
  
The golden dragon huffed. "I'm sure it can't be any worse than you are."  
  
"Well, I suppose it's all a matter of personal taste," Xellos said thoughtfully. "If you would really prefer to   
be stranded alone in the deepest tunnel in a never-ending labyrinth of caves while being stalked by a giant,   
slimy, flesh-eating mutant invertebrate…"  
  
"Aren't I already?" Filia snarled dryly.  
  
Xellos' hand went to his heart. "I'm hurt, Filia."  
  
"Good. Now go away!" The infuriated woman spun towards Xellos, her mace at the ready, but hit only   
thin air. She hurriedly spun in a frantic circle, searching for a trace of the Mazoku. After a moment of   
silence, she sighed. He was gone. She turned to continue down the tunnel…  
  
And walked face first into Xellos, who stood behind her leaning on his staff. He wrapped an arm around her   
shoulders, pulling her further into the folds of his robes. "A hug?" he grinned. "Apology accepted!"  
  
The tunnels vibrated from the volume of Filia's scream.  
  
  
Shadow Xellos whimpered as he turned slowly down yet another creepy, lonely tunnel. "Miss Shadow   
Amelia?" he called, his voice wavering. "Where are you? Miss Not-Shadow Amelia? Anyone?" He   
sniffled. "Guys! THIS ISN'T FUNNY ANYMORE!" Another blind turn led him further into the labyrinth   
of passageways.  
  
"Hello?" whimpered a soft, nervous voice. "Is… is someone there?"  
  
"Yes! Where are you?" Shadow Xellos called, relieved that he'd finally found someone.  
  
"I'm over here!" the voice responded. "Who are you? Are you a bad guy? Are you lost, too? Where am I?   
Where did Lina and everyone go? I hate the dark! I'm-ACK!" The voice yelped as Xellos tripped over its   
owner. The pseudo-Xellos yelped, too, barely catching himself before he hit the ground. He conjured up a   
light spell, forcing the shadows to skitter away and hide behind rocks.   
  
"Xellos?"  
  
Shadow Xellos frowned. "Zelgadis?"   
  
The figure shook its head.  
  
"You're not Zelgadis?"  
  
"I am."  
  
"You're n…"  
  
"I'm… I'm not…" the figure swallowed hard, a blush evident on his stony cheeks. "I'm not the real   
Zelgadis," he whispered.  
  
"Oh." Shadow Xellos smiled. "That's okay! I'm not the real Xellos!"  
  
"Really?" The shadow Chimera, wide-eyed. "You mean you're a reflection, too?"  
  
The false Xellos smiled. "Yeah!"  
  
"Wow! I've never met another shadow before! How did you get here? Did you get lost? Where's   
everyone else?"  
  
"Um," the anti-Xellos blinked, sorting out the flood of questions. "I… guess I'm lost, yes. I don't know   
where everyone else is."  
  
Shadow Zelgadis lowered his head, disappointed, and sank to the floor of the cavern, sniffling. "Oh," he   
said. "So what do we do now?"  
  
Shadow Xellos placed a finger on his lip, in thought. "Well," he began, "When I was little, Zelas-sama   
always told me that if I got lost, I was to blow something really big up and she'd see the explosion and come   
get me."  
  
Shadow Zelgadis' lip began to tremble.  
  
"But I don't think that will work here," Shadow Xellos finished. "So why don't we just stay still until they   
come to find us?"  
  
Wiping his nose on his sleeve, Shadow Zel nodded.  
  
The Mazoku shadow frowned. "Are you alright?"  
  
"Yes," Shadow Zelgadis snuffled, then sobbed. "No! I'm SCARED! I WAS ALL ALONE!"  
  
"Um…"  
  
"I HATE THE DARK!"  
  
"…Well…"  
  
"IT'S COLD AND YUCKY DOWN HERE!"  
  
Shadow Xellos sighed. "Do you need a hug?"  
  
The phantom Chimera snuffled and hesitated for a second, then leapt into Shadow Xellos' arms, bawling.  
  
"There there," Shadow Xellos said as he patted the Chimera on the back. "Just cry it all out. It's all   
right…"  
  
  
Sylphiel glanced behind her nervously as she ran along the path. Where exactly had Xellos gone with the   
mirror? Where had her reflection manifested? She said a quick prayer that it hadn't done anything   
embarrassing or stupid. She heard voices echoing in the distance; it sounded like Lina was shouting   
something.  
  
  
"What the hell has gotten into you, Sylphiel?" Lina yelled, pulling the shrine maiden off of one of the   
Gourrys and pushing her back.   
  
Shadow Sylphiel shrugged innocently. "What?"  
  
"YOU WERE HUMPING HIS LEG!"  
  
"I was not!" the girl defended. "I was just giving him a… hug." She waved her fingers at the Gourry she   
had been latched to a few seconds earlier, winking.   
  
"Oi, Lina, calm down," Gourry said, putting a hand on the sorceress' shoulder.  
  
"I AM CALM!" Lina huffed. "I'm perfectly calm!"  
  
"No you're not," Shadow Sylphiel frowned. "You're freakin' nuts."  
  
Lina's nostrils flared, her eyes widening as a jolt of fury shot up her spine.  
  
"No wonder men never give you a second look," the shrine maiden's reflection continued. "Lookit you!   
Vicious, always flying off the handle, short, small-breasted…"  
  
"FIREBALL!" Lina swore as nothing happened.  
  
"And you always turn to violence," the shadow finished.  
  
Both Gourrys grabbed one of Lina's arms as she launched herself at Shadow Sylphiel, her eyes burning with   
fury. "LET ME GO!" the infuriated sorceress roared, surging against the men. "I've got to kill her!   
Lemme GO!"  
  
Shadow Sylphiel, still unflinching and unafraid of Lina's fury, leaned close to the redhead and whispered.   
"No wonder Gourry would rather be my bitch than yours."  
  
  
The voices became clearer as Sylphiel turned down a fork and picked up her speed. Ahead, she saw Lina's   
torch, still burning though it was discarded on the ground. Four figures were congregated in the torch's   
light.   
  
"GOURRY IS NOT YOUR BITCH!" Lina shouted.  
  
The original Sylphiel swallowed as she approached the group. "Um…"  
  
"He isn't?" Shadow Sylphiel purred.   
  
"OF COURSE GOURRY'S NOT YOUR BITCH!"  
  
"Why not?" the phantom girl demanded. "What makes you think that he would turn me down?"  
  
"Because he's MY bitch!"  
  
Both Gourrys blinked. "I am?" Gourry asked.  
  
"I am?" Shadow Gourry echoed.  
  
"Shut up, tofu brains," Lina snapped, shoving both swordsmen away.   
  
"Excuse me…" non-shadow Sylphiel interjected. She was pale and beginning to feel rather nauseous.   
  
"What do you want?!" Lina barked, turning to the nervous girl. She blinked. "S…Sylphiel?"  
  
"I can explain, Miss Lina," the original violet-haired shrine maiden offered.  
  
"Yes, you're MY bitch," Shadow Sylphiel cooed, stroking one of the Gourrys. "All mine, none for that   
nasty mean sorceress…"  
  
Lina turned to the shadow, her eyes flooded with realization. "GET YOUR FILTHY PAWS OFF HIM,   
YOU DAMN DIRTY SHADOW!" she howled, launching herself at the reflection.   
  
Whi-CRACK!  
  
Lina, Sylphiel, Gourry, and Gourry froze, eyes wide, as Shadow Sylphiel cracked the whip again.  
  
Whi-CRACK!  
  
"He's mine!" she declared. "Both of him!"  
  
Sweatdropping, Lina swallowed. "Um…"  
  
"Oh, no," Sylphiel whimpered.  
  
"Where the hell did you get that whip from?" Lina pointed an accusatory finger.  
  
Shadow Sylphiel folded her arms, unhappy with the reaction she had gotten. Weren't they supposed to be   
groveling? "I had it," she answered indignantly.  
  
"And…" Lina muttered, her eyes slowly creeping towards the original Sylphiel. She ran over how the   
mirror worked in her mind, wondering if she'd made a mistake in her assumptions. A shadow was an exact   
match in skill and appearance, right down to the clothing they wore… and the tools they carried. "If she has   
a bullwhip, that means that…" her eyes found their goal on a very distraught Sylphiel, whose deep red blush   
showed, though her face was buried in her hands.   
  
Shadow Gourry frowned. "What's a bitch?"  
  
"I know!" the original Gourry volunteered. "Well, I kind of know. It's what waiters call Lina when they   
think she's not listening!"  
  
"Oh," the blonde swordsman's counterpart said, still confused. "I don't get it."  
  
"I don't get it either."  
  
  
Shadow Amelia sulked along the tunnel, Shadow Xellos' staff dragging behind her and clunking against the   
occasional rock. She frowned and puffed the hair out of her eyes. It normally wouldn't have bothered her   
to be alone, but she hadn't really been paying attention to where she was running, and she appeared to be   
lost. If she was a bit more dramatic, she might have thought up stories about wandering the caverns for a   
lifetime, living off of cave creatures, lost and lonesome for an eternity… but she preferred to be a bit more   
realistic. Most likely, she'd either starve or be torn apart by a small dragon or some wild beast that had   
gotten just as lost as she was.   
  
"NAMAGOMI!"  
  
Or she'd encounter one of the other, less lost members of her party.  
  
"Really, Filia, don't you think you've overused that word? Why not come up with a new one?"  
  
"Namagomi suits you just fine!"  
  
Shadow Amelia doused her lighting spell and pressed against a wall as the two figures came to the fork   
where her tunnel connected with theirs. The Ryuuzoku paused, consulting her map, as Xellos read over her   
shoulder.   
  
"This way," Filia muttered to herself, turning down the right path and heading away from Shadow Amelia.   
Xellos, however, remained at the fork, his brow furrowed in thought. His eyes slitted open as he peered into   
the darkness of Shadow Amelia's tunnel. The young girl froze, hoping he couldn't sense her. She had little   
desire to actually accompany any members of their party, content to simply follow them, using them as a   
guide.   
  
"Xellos?" echoed Filia's voice from down the right tunnel. "Thank Cephied, he's finally gone…"  
  
Xellos snapped to attention. "Coming, Filia!" he shouted jovially, apparently having contented himself   
without locating Shadow Amelia. "It's nice to know that you're worried about my welfare, you know. A   
ruder, more thoughtless dragon would probably be glad to have me gone." His voice faded as he   
disappeared into the tunnel.  
  
"You know, I hope we do meet that cave worm," Filia said in the distance. "It probably makes better   
conversation than you do, namagomi. I bet it's friendlier, too."  
  
"Yes, I'm sure it would take to you immediately."  
  
Rolling her eyes, the phantom Amelia followed the arguing couple at a distance.  
  
  
Zelgadis tucked his map back into his tunic as he turned right down a corridor, the sack in which he had   
carefully concealed his first two mirror shards hanging snug on his belt. While the others had only one   
fragment to find, he had three. He really didn't mind; he was confident that he could find them easily   
enough, and he was usually a bit more efficient than the rest of his group. The first two pieces had been easy   
to locate, and, aside from hearing the occasional odd noise, the search had been uneventful. According to   
his map, he was pretty close to the third fragment.  
  
A strange echo reverberated down the tunnel, and the Chimera paused, frowning. He could have sworn he   
had just heard his own voice shouting about how scary the dark was.   
  
"Yareyare," he muttered. "Now I'm hearing things. Some vacation this is turning out to be."   
  
"Hello? Can anybody hear me?"  
  
Zelgadis frowned further, making out a small figure in the near dark. "Amelia?"  
  
"Mister. Zelgadis!" the girl rushed towards her friend and wrapped her arms around his waist, flooded with   
relief. After a moment, the chimera cleared his throat. "Oh! Er… sorry," Amelia said, blushing madly as   
she pulled away.  
  
Turning so that the princess couldn't see his own blush, the Chimera busied himself studying his map again.   
"How'd you get over here, Amelia? Your tunnel was…"  
  
"Mister Zelgadis," Amelia began solemnly, "I had a problem."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
The girl nodded, taking a deep breath. "You see… Mister Xellos came, and… and… well when we found   
the chest he said that we should check if the mirror was still in there, but I said no, because Miss Lina would   
get really really mad, but he did it anyway, and then I tripped, and I fell on the mirror, and now I have a   
shadow, and Mister. Xellos has a shadow too, and then Shadow Me stole Shadow Xellos' staff and ran   
away, and Shadow Xellos followed her, and now they're both lost and Miss Lina's gonna kill me!  
  
Zelgadis blinked. "Shadow… Xellos?"  
  
Amelia nodded.  
  
He sighed. "Let's just hope that Lina doesn't find him. Come on, I've got one more piece to get."  
  
"You're not mad?"  
  
"Not at you. I do, however, have the sudden strong impulse to hurt Xellos very badly. But that's normal."   
He started back down the tunnel, staggering slightly as Amelia hugged him again, relieved that he wasn't   
upset with her. She released him quickly this time, only blushing a little, and fell into step next to him.   
  
The girl bit her lip, thinking, as she trotted to keep up with Zelgadis' broad steps. "I wonder…"  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"Well, I was just thinking… why would Mister Xellos want to make a shadow of me? He didn't even stick   
around to see what happened after he made the shadows…"  
  
Zelgadis frowned. "He has been acting rather odd, even for himself. He seemed to know a bit more than   
anyone else about the Shadow Reflector… maybe this was his plan from the start." The Chimera stopped, a   
headache suddenly threatening to overwhelm him. "Oh, Cephied's tail… that must be it."  
  
"Mister Zelgadis? Are you alright?" Amelia asked, concerned.  
  
"I'm fine. We have to find Xellos before he does what I think he's planning on doing, if he hasn't already."  
  
Amelia blinked. "What?"  
  
"Come on, let's go."  
  
"But, Mister. Zelgadis! What about the last piece of the mirror?"  
  
"It's not important."  
  
"But what about the people who are looking for…"  
  
"Just trust me, Amelia."  
  
  
Lina growled menacingly at no one in particular as she stormed down the tunnel. A rope hung from her   
hand, playing out taut behind her, the other end coiled tightly around Shadow Sylphiel. The rope efficiently   
pinned the girl's arms to her side.  
  
The reflection was hardly pleased.  
  
"Lemme go, you jealous little hussy! I swear, once I get out of this, I'll Dragon Slave your sorry little   
prepubescent ass into a magical girl anime!"  
  
Lina snarled, trying her damnedest to ignore the girl's insults. "Sylphiel," she hissed quietly to the original   
purple-haired shrine maiden, who walked quietly next to the sorceress, still fighting to recover from her   
earlier embarrassment.  
  
"Yes?" the girl asked timidly.  
  
Lina turned, fury burning in her red-glowing eyes. "This. Is. YOUR. FAULT!"  
  
Sylphiel paled. "M… Miss Lina, I didn't do this… not intentionally, at least… I told you, Xellos came, and   
he… I'm so sorry!"  
  
"STOP APOLOGIZING! IF YOU WEREN'T SO DAMN NICE, YOUR SHADOW WOULDN'T BE   
SUCH A BITCH!" She gave Shadow Sylphiel's rope a violent jerk.  
  
"I'M the bitch?"  
  
"Shut up!"  
  
"Oi, Lina, what's a bitch?"  
  
"Her!" Lina yelled, jerking on Shadow Sylphiel's rope again.  
  
"Hey, knock that off, you underdeveloped little witch!"  
  
"Must kill Xellos," Lina muttered urgently. "Kill him dead. Must kill him dead…"  
  
  
Filia frowned at her map. "Turn left at… I can't even read this. An arrow pointing left, and… the… what   
does that say?"  
  
"I believe it says, 'Turn right at the fourth junction of tunnels'," Xellos answered. "Or, at least, it would, if   
you weren't holding the map upside-down." Grinning, the Mazoku snatched the paper from the dragon's   
fingers, turned it around, and replaced it.  
  
"It is not upside-down!" Filia objected, turning the map once again. "I had it right!"  
  
"Then why are we lost?"  
  
"We're not lost!" the priestess said loudly, concern creeping into her eyes. "The tunnels just aren't labeled   
right."  
  
"That's funny," Xellos observed, "Because the map was fine for every other party."  
  
Filia stomped a foot, the map wrinkling as she clenched her hands into fists. "Well, if travelling with me is   
so frustrating, why don't you go pester someone else?!"  
  
"They're not nearly as much fun as you are, Filia." The Mazoku circled around his nervous and frustrated   
prey. "Besides, it would be impolite to leave you down here at the mercy of the elements and your own   
poor sense of direction."  
  
"My sense of direction is just fine."  
  
"This said by someone who is currently reading her map upside-down." Xellos ducked under a swing of   
Filia's mace and took a step back, grinning impishly.   
  
Having missed her target again, Filia growled. "Fine," she hissed. "I'm just going to ignore you.   
Completely ignore you. I'll pretend you're not here…"  
  
"But has that ever worked before, Filia?"  
  
"I can't hear you, namagomi."  
  
"Then why are you answering?"  
  
Filia began to hum loudly. Xellos fell silent for a moment, and Filia shot him a smug grin.   
  
"I think you're a bit off-key, Filia," Xellos noted.  
  
The dragon simply hummed louder. Minutes passed. It seemed that she had finally mastered the art of   
Mazoku-ignoring, the priestess noted to herself.  
  
"This has lost its entertainment value," Xellos muttered. "Apparently, the Ryuuzoku have a very poor ear   
for pitch." The trickster frowned as his comment went ignored. He sighed, disappointed that his game was   
ended. He would have left, but he still needed the shadow of the dragon. Filia's shadow would be very   
valuable to him. Considering Filia's personality, her reflection would be even tempered, laid back, and   
extremely evil, a perfect candidate for transformation into a Mazoku. Along with Amelia's and Sylphiel's   
shadows, and possibly Zelgadis', depending on how much of the Chimera really was cold and heartless and   
what was just for show, would also be quite useful to him. He was glad he'd been able to bribe the   
information out of the large-breasted sorceress… although she had eaten enough to completely suck dry all   
of Xellos' bountiful funds. Unfortunately, she hadn't remembered exactly where the mirror was hidden.   
Still, it hadn't been difficult to find a way to convince Lina to lead him to it. Xellos was pleased with the   
way things had turned out; making shadows this way was proving to be a lot more fun than simply making   
reflections while everyone else slept.   
  
He eyed his tone-deaf companion coolly, thinking. He didn't have any fragments of the mirror on him, at the   
moment, since he had left the scene with Amelia in a hurry. He'd fled, not because he was afraid, but   
because the thought of both Amelia and his shadow in one place made his stomach churn.  
  
Pausing, Xellos blinked at the orb on his staff. He could feel it reacting again, like it had at the fork between   
the tunnels.  
  
"Found it!" he heard Filia shout from up ahead. She had turned a corner while he stopped, and was now out   
of his field of vision. "I knew I was reading the map right! Now we can get out of this drafty cave…"  
  
The Mazoku barely heard the dragon speaking, as his attention focused on the orb. The stone was   
producing a very strong, almost magnetic pull, notifying Xellos that another high-level Mazoku was near.   
The pull could have been produced by his shadow's staff, he supposed. But at the hands of a creature like   
Shadow Xellos, who surely had not a thread of ill will in its being, the orb would be drained of the evil aura   
that fed it, and would go dormant. So where was this coming from? Perhaps it had…  
  
THUNK!   
  
Xellos crumpled to the floor, unconscious.  
  
"Sweet," Shadow Amelia sneered. "Now I've got two of 'em!" she grinned as she reached for Xellos' staff.  
  
"Hey! Xellos! I found the…" Filia turned the corner and nearly tripped over Xellos' prone form. She   
frowned at the shadow, who stood poised over Xellos, still reaching for the second staff. "Amelia?   
What…"  
  
The reflection froze. "Um…" she said lamely, her eyes shifting from left to right. "I turned dow… er… I   
was… er…" she curled her fingers around the original staff, her eyes latched on Filia's. "That is to say, you   
see… um… YOINK!"  
  
Filia stared, bewildered, as Shadow Amelia took off back down the tunnel, now dragging two staffs and   
shouting obscenities over her shoulder. She glanced down at Xellos' unconscious form. "I'm sure this was   
somehow your fault," she said, toeing at the limp Mazoku's side.   
  
  
Zelgadis shook his head to clear his eyes, hoping on every god he could remember the name of that he   
wasn't seeing what he thought he was seeing. He squeezed his eyes closed, held his breath, and opened his   
eyes again.  
  
"Amelia," he muttered under his breath, "Am I seeing things?"  
  
"I hope so," the girl answered in a similar, quiet tone. "Because otherwise you have a shadow who is   
snuggling Mister Xellos."  
  
Zelgadis shuddered and closed his eyes, blocking out the two sleeping forms leaning up against the cave   
wall. He covered his face with his hands, cringing. This was not happening.  
  
"Should we wake them up?" Amelia asked hesitantly.   
  
"I say we kill them in their sleep and do the universe a favor."  
  
"Mister Zelgadis!" the Justice Warrior chastised, "That's not nice! Just because they… er… are…   
differently oriented… doesn't mean they're any less human!"  
  
"It has nothing to do with that," Zelgadis answered, his head still buried in his hands. "It has everything to   
do with the fact that I don't want to have to suffer through a shadow me." He looked up. "And killing   
Xellos has always been a personal aspiration of mine. Why not take advantage of the situation?"  
  
"Because it isn't fair!" Amelia shouted, striking a pose. "All creatures should be given a fair, fighting chance   
to survive!" Her cape flapped in a sudden breeze. "I, Amelia wil Tesla Seiyruun, must protect those with   
fewer advantages, in the name of Justice!"  
  
As the princess finished her speech, the sound of clapping was heard. Amelia spun on her heel, and yelped   
as she came face-to-face with Shadow Xellos, who stood with stars in his eyes and his hands clasped   
beneath his chin.  
  
"Wow, Miss Amelia, you're so noble!" he beamed.  
  
Amelia blinked. "Um… thank you, Mister Xellos…"  
  
"Shadow Xellos," the shadow corrected. Shadow Zelgadis peered out from behind Shadow Xellos' cloak,   
his eyes wide.  
  
"Oh. That explains a lot," the princess noted.  
  
"It's sort of comforting, in a twisted sort of way," Zelgadis muttered. "I suppose this means that the last   
thing I'd ever do is… snuggle… Xellos."  
  
"Miss Amelia," Shadow Xellos continued, "Can you help us? We were lost. Can we follow you and Mister   
Not-Shadow Zelgadis?"  
  
"Er… sure, I guess…"  
  
"WAI! Arigato!"  
  
"Ack!" Amelia wheezed. "Don't hug so tight, Mister Shadow Xellos, I can't BREATHE…"   
  
  
Filia panted and hefted Xellos higher up on her back, then resumed her staggering. She was a Golden   
Dragon, one of the strongest, most dignified and beautiful beasts in the world. And here she was, sweating   
profusely while dragging a Mazoku through a cave, her legs rubbery from the strain. Xellos was heavy.  
  
"Namagomi," she growled. "Lose some weight, would you?" She paused, frowning, as the murmur of   
voices bounced off the stone walls and reached her keen ears.  
  
"And then, I was in the tunnel, and it was, like, really really dark, and I was kinda scared, and then there was   
this sound, and I was like, 'Ahh!' and it was like 'Squeak squeak!' and then I realized it was just a mouse   
and that I shouldn't be scared of it, and then I realized that I hate mice and so I ran away really fast, and then   
I got more lost and it was even darker, and…"  
  
"Don't you have to stop to breathe?" Zelgadis asked his shadow.  
  
"Huh?" Shadow Zel asked, momentarily distracted from his story. "Anyway, so then I was even more lost   
than I was before, so I sat down, and I was all worried because there are bats in caves and I'm scared of bats   
because they suck your blood and eat you alive and scratch you with their little claws, and then Shadow   
Xellos came and I was all scared 'cause I thought he was a giant bat, but he wasn't, and so he…"  
  
"Hello?" Filia called.  
  
"Filia!" Zelgadis answered, relieved. "Finally, someone sane…"   
  
"I'm over here! Er… just follow my voice."  
  
Their footsteps became louder as the small party emerged from a tunnel.  
  
"What happened?" the Chimera asked, seeing Xellos' state.  
  
"I honestly don't know," the dragon answered, huffing. "I do know that he's a lot heavier than he looks."  
  
"Here, Miss Filia, let me help you!" offered the phantom Xellos, leaping to the Ryuuzoku's side and   
throwing an arm under his unconscious double.  
  
"Ack!" Filia dropped Xellos and jumped backwards. The Mazoku collapsed on his shadow, the reflection   
grunting under the weight. "Sweet Cephied, two of them!" She jumped again as she saw Shadow Zelgadis.   
"Two of everyone! I must be cracking!"  
  
"They're shadows," Amelia explained. "It's alright. Um… is Mister Xellos dead?" She ducked and peered   
up at Xellos' face.  
  
"Amelia!" the dragon said, noticing the girl for the first time. "Whatever your reasons, or even if you didn't   
have one, I completely sympathize with you, Miss Amelia. You have my complete and utmost respect."  
  
"What? What for?"  
  
"For knocking Xellos out. You must've swung pretty hard…"  
  
"But I didn't do this," Amelia answered, baffled. "I was with Mister Zelgadis."  
  
"I would have done it myself, b… what?"  
  
"I was with Mister Zelgadis the entire time, Miss Filia. I didn't do this to Mister Xellos."  
  
The dragon's brow furrowed. "But I saw you…"  
  
"Amelia has a shadow, too," Zelgadis explained. "It was probably her."  
  
Filia sighed heavily. "I'm sure this is Xellos' fault."  
  
Amelia and Zelgadis simply nodded.  
  
"Um," gasped the phantom Xellos. "Can someone help me? Getting… harder to… breathe… vision   
blurring…"  
  
Filia slipped under Xellos' other arm and lifted half of the Mazoku's weight.   
  
"Thank you," Shadow Xellos offered weakly, the spots in his vision slowly clearing.   
  
Shaking his head, Zelgadis rolled his eyes. It could only happen to them. "Let's go find Lina and the   
others," he said.  
  
"Right!" chimed Amelia, striking a gallant pose. "Onward we travel, Destiny and Justice our only   
companions, as we rush to the aid of our comrades!"  
  
Filia's eyes bulged as Shadow Xellos phased out from under his originator and popped in front of Amelia,   
his hands clasped beneath his chin. "Wow!" he said, his eyes watery and big, "Such fervor! Such   
dedication! Miss Amelia, may I model my life after yours?" He smiled hopefully.  
  
"Um… sure, I guess."  
  
"WAI!"  
  
"ACK! You're crushing my ribs!"  
  
"Eww! Something slimy touched my foot!" Zelgadis' shadow squealed.  
  
Had the original Chimera not been an emotionally strong person, he would have started crying.  
  
  
"Stop pulling so hard!" Shadow Sylphiel whined.  
  
"Dear Cephied," Lina said quietly, her eyes turned to the roof of the cavern, "Please, please, please send my   
powers back now. Five minutes is all I ask. If you do this for me, I promise I'll never loot one of your   
temples ever again, even if it is abandoned. Amen."  
  
"Oi, Lina, look out for that…"  
  
Lina growled. "Gourry, if you…"  
  
"Shadow Gourry, actually."  
  
"DOES IT MATTER? YOU'RE BOTH EXACTLY THE SAME!"  
  
"Really, Lina, look out for…"  
  
"There is no rock! I see no rock! Stop warning me about-OOF!"  
  
Gourry and his shadow sighed simultaneously as they peered down into the hole Lina had fallen into. "We   
did try to warn her," Gourry shrugged.   
  
"FIREBALL! Dammit, Cephied, why don't you ever answer my prayers? FIREBALL! FIREBALL!   
Argh!"  
  
  
Shadow Amelia yawned as she turned down yet another drippy, cold tunnel, and wondered where the hell   
she was.   
  
"So much for the dragon getting me un-lost," she muttered. Shadow Xellos' staff clunked against a rock.   
As cool and as valuable as they were, the staffs weighed as much as Prince Phil after Christmas dinner. They   
made a nice pair, though; the blood red orb in Xellos' staff nicely complemented the sky-blue gem in   
Shadow Xellos'. Maybe I can sell them as a his-and-hers set for three times the cash, she thought.   
Then I can buy all sorts of cool shit. Like a nail gun! Yeah! She grinned in malicious excitement.  
  
An odd sense of foreboding descended over her suddenly, forcing her to pause for a second. It felt as if   
currents of electricity were running up and down her arms, between the two staffs. She bit her lip.  
  
An odd, squishy noise drifted to her ears from the end of the tunnel. The false Amelia cocked one eyebrow.   
What went squish in a cave? She slowed her pace, stepping cautiously. She came to a bend in the cavern   
and stopped, listening. The squishing was definitely coming closer. She ran over a list in her mind. What   
was in caves? Rocks. Stagnant lakes. Cave crickets. She shuffled sideways closer to the bend, holding   
both staffs at the ready. Bats lived in caves. Stalactites. More rocks… she stepped around the corner.  
  
And giant, evil cave worms with lots of teeth. Those lived in caves.   
  
Shadow Amelia swallowed hard.  
  
The cave worm, which had been happily grooming its pale, flabby, legless body with its teeth, froze. It   
sniffed the air twice, then turned its sightless eyes towards Shadow Amelia.  
  
"Um… nice mister cave worm… good mister cave worm…"  
  
The worm made a threatening, flatulent sound with its thick, fleshy lips.  
  
"DIE!" Shadow Amelia yelled, smacking the creature in the head with both staffs at once. The creatures   
thick, boneless body absorbed the blow, jiggling from its head to its tail. If its eyes had worked, it would   
have stared at the phantom princess in disbelief. "Oops," the girl said, very, very quietly.  
  
The cave worm roared, its fungal lips flipping back to reveal five blade-sharp rows of needle-like teeth.  
  
Shadow Amelia eep'd and started to run.  
  
  
Zelgadis was alerted to the presence of Lina's party by the sorceress Inverse flinging herself at his legs. The   
redhead skidded a few feet on her knees, coming to a stop at Zelgadis' feet.   
  
"Please, Zel," she whimpered urgently, her hands latched together tightly, "Kill them!"  
  
"Kill who?"  
  
"THEM!"  
  
Zelgadis blinked. "Sylphiel and Gourry?"  
  
"ALL OF THEM! I don't care if you get the real ones or not, just as long as they're DEAD!"   
  
"What are you doing, Miss Lina?" Amelia asked, slightly concerned.  
  
"Lina," Zelgadis began, "I'm not going to kill Gourry and Sylphiel just because th…" the Chimera yelped as   
Lina lifted him off his feet and aimed him towards her travelling companions like a cannon.  
  
"Ra Tilt!" she yelled.  
  
Nothing happened.  
  
"Dammit! RA TILT!"   
  
"Oi, Lina," Gourry called, "I may not be a magician or anything, but… I don't think it really works like   
that."  
  
Lina sighed heavily, dropping Zelgadis to the floor. The Chimera sweatdropped, glowering. "Why did I   
have to be born a woman?" Lina muttered, sinking to her knees.  
  
"It's alright, Miss Lina," Amelia said, patting her companion on the shoulder. "It'll be over soon."  
  
"Do you need a hug?" Shadow Xellos asked sympathetically.   
  
Lina's eyes snapped open, suddenly glowing a deep, demonic red. In a blurry second, she stood holding   
Shadow Xellos by his neck, throttling the very life out of him.  
  
"Damn you, Xellos! You're the one that did this!"  
  
"Um, Miss Lina," Amelia interjected. "That's…"  
  
"Shush, Amelia! I don't need your Justice crap right now! You can lecture me AFTER I kill Xellos!" Her   
gloved fingers tightened on the reflection's throat. Shadow Xellos began to produce a desperate gurgling   
noise.  
  
"No, really, Miss Lina, that's not…"  
  
"THIS is for Shadow Sylphiel!" Lina snarled, giving the Mazoku a violent shake. "And THIS is for Shadow   
Sylphiel, too! And THIS! AND THIS!"  
  
"That's not Xellos," Filia managed to gasp from under the real Mazoku, where she fought to keep her   
footing in Shadow Xellos' sudden absence.   
  
"AND TH… what?"  
  
"Gack," said Shadow Xellos quietly.  
  
"That's not the real Xellos," Amelia finished, pointing to the unconscious demon and unhappy dragon. "The   
real Xellos is over there."  
  
Lina dropped the shadow, and turned her glare to the real Xellos, who was draped unceremoniously across   
the Ryuuzoku's back. "It's no fun to kill him if he's already dead!" the infuriated sorceress shouted.  
  
Already dead! Already dead! Already dead!  
  
"He's not dead," Zelgadis responded, nonplussed. "Unfortunately. Amelia's shadow knocked him out."  
  
"Good for Amelia's shadow," Lina grumbled bitterly.  
  
"Miss Lina," Amelia asked, cocking her head, "Why is Sylphiel gagged?"  
  
"That ain't Sylphiel, that's her bitch of a shadow."  
  
"You shouldn't call people such names, Miss Lina," Shadow Xellos reprimanded. "Every living being   
deserves its chance! I'm sure that, deep down, Miss Shadow Sylphiel is a good, kind, gentle person, just   
like the real Sylphiel is!"  
  
"Mrrphrrrgrr!" Shadow Sylphiel agreed.  
  
"And the real Sylphiel is an angel! Why, if I wasn't modeling my life after Miss Amelia's, I would model it   
after Miss Sylphiel's! You mustn't judge people by their immediate appearances!" Shadow Xellos continued,   
pointing an accusatory finger at Lina. "Justice demands that each person be given a chance to prove   
themselves! In the name of Justice, don't call Miss Shadow Sylphiel a bitch!" Fireworks went off behind   
him, illuminating his face in reds and golds.   
  
Lina stared blankly.   
  
"How'd I do, Miss Amelia?" Shadow Xellos asked excitedly, appearing in front of the princess, still   
breathing heavily from the enthusiasm of the speech.  
  
"Not bad, for a first try. Your audience seems impressed!"  
  
"AIIIIIIIEEEE!" echoed the tunnels.  
  
"That's exactly what I was thinking," Zelgadis muttered.  
  
"Oi," Shadow Gourry said, scratching his head, "Where's that screaming coming from?"  
  
"You mean it's not me?" Lina twitched.  
  
"No… it sounds like Amelia."  
  
The real Amelia placed a finger on her lip. "I don't think that's me," she said.   
  
"It's getting louder." Zelgadis' hand went to his sword hilt, and Gourry mimicked a moment later. Shadow   
Zelgadis glomped onto Shadow Xellos, whimpering and pulling him back towards the shadows of the cave   
walls.  
  
"What do you think it is?" Sylphiel whispered.  
  
Still beneath Xellos, Filia frowned. The sound seemed to be coming from the tunnel behind her. She   
struggled to turn and look, shifting Xellos' weight to the side and forward so that she could see.   
  
"Cephied's tail…"  
  
"IT'S GONNA EAT ME!" Shadow Amelia howled as she roared out of the tunnel, knocking Filia off-  
balance. The dragon flailed as best she could for a second, then tipped backwards into Shadow Xellos.   
Shadow Zelgadis jumped out of the way, narrowly avoiding the falling Ryuuzoku.  
  
"What's going to eat you?" Lina asked of the panting reflection.  
  
"THAT!" Shadow Amelia pointed behind her to the entrance of the tunnel. Nothing. Lina raised an   
eyebrow, looking at the girl critically.   
  
"You're nuts," she assessed.  
  
"ROOOARPHT!"  
  
"Told you!"  
  
The cave worm exploded into the cavern, slithering forward on its stomach. Its skin was the color of a   
dumpling noodle, pale, sticky white with a disturbing translucent quality. Its flabby skin fell in drippy, moldy   
folds that vibrated as it roared. Its thick white lips were pulled back, its teeth bared. It thrashed around for   
a moment, disoriented by the sudden change into open space. As it came to its senses, it sniffed, made a   
disgusting farting noise, and turned face to face with Lina.  
  
The sorceress swallowed. The creature's stale, mildewy breath ruffled her hair.   
  
"Run," she said.  
  
Sandwiched between the two Xelloses, Filia struggled. "I can't move! I'm stuck!"   
  
"I'm scared! Hold me!" Shadow Zelgadis dove into the Ryuuzoku sandwich. The worm squelched past the   
four, paying them no heed, and dove into the tunnel into which the rest of the group had disappeared.  
  
"It's gaining on us!" Gourry cried. He drew his sword. His shadow, laden with the bound and gagged   
Shadow Sylphiel, tried to do likewise, but couldn't reach far enough to get his sword out of its sheath.  
  
Shadow Amelia panted hard. Her throat burned from labored breathing, her lungs ached as though they   
were scalded raw. Her legs felt like noodles. The staffs were weighing her down. She heard Lina's   
footsteps next to her, and managed a sinister grin.  
  
"Miss Lina!" she shouted, "Heads up!"  
  
"What? Ack!" Lina dove to catch the staffs before they crashed against the rock floor. She rolled as she hit   
the ground, one staff in each arm. "Gotcha," she sighed.  
  
"ROOOAAAPHTPHTPHT!"  
  
Lina's eyes widened as she noticed just how many teeth a cave worm had. The beast was covering the   
ground between them at an alarming rate. She froze.  
  
"Lina!" both Gourrys shouted.  
  
"Oh Cephied. Oh Cephied. Oh Cephied."   
  
Lina Inverse knew fear. Hell, she'd been raised by Luna Inverse. But Luna Inverse had never threatened to   
eat her, nor did Luna Inverse have rows upon rows of long, sharp teeth. Luna Inverse's breath didn't smell   
of rot. Luna Inverse did not have the decaying carcass of a chipmunk stuck in her molars. Lina felt   
suddenly ill. "Dear Cephied," she tried one last time, "If you give me my magic back…" the worm could   
move a lot faster than it looked. "I will never, ever, do an evil thing…" it was upon her, its mouth was   
opening. "Again!" The worm moved to swallow Lina, but jabbed itself in the mouth with Xellos' staff,   
which Lina still held. In the precious seconds following, Lina raised her hands and clenched her eyes shut.   
"Just this once, Cephied! FIREBALL!"  
  
  
Back in the cavern, Shadow Zelgadis yelped as a sudden explosion sent tremors through the ground. A   
stalactite crashed to the ground next to him.   
  
"Sweet Cephied!" Filia growled, her voice muffled by the Mazoku on top of her. "Would ONE of the   
Xelloses please MOVE?"  
  
"I'm sorry, Miss Filia," Shadow Xellos said from beneath her, "But I can't move until you get up!"  
  
"I can't get Xellos off of me!"  
  
"Owie! I stubbed my toe!" Shadow Zelgadis yelped.  
  
  
Lina was waist-deep in worm goo. You're not going to panic, Inverse, she thought. You're not going   
to flip out. It's just… wormy… goop… not going to flip out. Not going to flip out.   
  
"Holy shit!" Shadow Amelia swore, peeling strips of worm meat off of her tunic. "Did you have to blow the   
damn thing up? Why the hell didn't you use Freeze Arrow or something that WOULDN'T cover us in cave   
worm drooly bits? I mean, d…"  
  
Thud!   
  
Lina's nostrils flared as she stood over the now-unconscious Shadow Amelia and hefted the weight of   
Xellos' staff in her hand. "I like the other Amelia better," she glared.  
  
"Er, thanks, I think, Miss Lina," Amelia said, lifting a large chunk of blubbery white mass from her head. "I   
could really use another bath…"  
  
"I could use another meal," Gourry agreed.  
  
"Ooh! Great idea, not-shadow-me!" Shadow Gourry enthused.  
  
"Mrrrph!" Shadow Sylphiel grunted from the ground.  
  
"And things are already back to normal," Zelgadis noted dryly as he helped Sylphiel to her feet.   
  
  
"Shadow Zel, get over here and help us out!"  
  
"But I'm scared! The cave might fall in, and then we'd be trapped forever, and then we'd starve to death,   
and we'd have to turn cannibalistic, and gnaw off our own limbs, just like in that one episode of Liddo Kun   
and Friends!"  
  
Filia was getting a nasty headache. She pushed at Xellos again, trying to summon what was left of her   
strength, but she was almost completely drained. She was getting awfully hot; Xellos' body heat was   
smothering her. She felt him move of his own accord.  
  
"Oya oya," muttered the Mazoku quietly.  
  
"Xellos!" Filia snapped. "Get up! Go on!"  
  
Violet eyes fluttered open slowly. "Ruby-eye, my head… I feel like I've been hit by a house."  
  
"No, just a staff. And a mace, soon, if you don't get up."  
  
"Miss Filia, you saved me…" Shadow Xellos groaned weakly from beneath the stack of bodies.  
  
"Filia?" Xellos' voice was rough; he was still disoriented from the blow to the head. His eyes focused a bit.   
The dragon felt distinctly uncomfortable; Xellos' face was inches from hers. Finally under their masters'   
control, two violet orbs locked with Filia's blue.  
  
The Shadow continued, ignored. "If it wasn't for you, I'd have been eaten by the cave worm…"  
  
"Um…" the Ryuuzoku said lamely.  
  
"I had this dream," the Mazoku said dazedly. "And you were there, and I was there, and there was this giant   
vat of honey…"  
  
"I owe you my life, Miss Filia!" Shadow Xellos finished.  
  
"Get up, namagomi!"  
  
"Oh, but it's all nice and squishy here…"  
  
Filia somehow found the power to fling Xellos off of her. She scrambled to her feet. Shadow Xellos took a   
deep, shuddering breath, oxygen flooding his system as he wheezed.   
  
"Oi, Filia!" Zelgadis' voice bounced off of the walls. "You all right back there?"  
  
"Yes, I'm alright. For the most part."  
  
"Good. Let's get out of here."  
  
  
Lina leaned back in her chair, patting her stomach. Her full purse jangled at her side. "I'm stuffed," she   
sighed happily.   
  
"I can't believe you sold them to the circus," Amelia mourned. "What a terrible thing to do…"  
  
"Bah, it was just Sylphiel's and yours and Zelgadis'. If they'd have stayed with us, I would have wound up   
killing them anyway."  
  
"But, Miss Lina!"  
  
"No buts, Amelia! The money I made off of them is paying for dinner tonight, and unless you want to pick   
up the tab…"  
  
"Nevermind."  
  
"That's what I thought." Lina thought for a moment. "Er… hey, Filia? Sylphiel?"  
  
"Yes?" both girls answered.  
  
"Cephied's a forgiving god, right?"  
  
"Of course He is, Miss Lina," Filia said. "Cephied is love."  
  
"So, then, if I broke a promise I made… I wouldn't necessarily go to hell, right?"  
  
"Well… not necessarily, no, but…"  
  
"Great! Look out, world, Lina Inverse has a new lease on life! Who-hoo!"  
  
"Gee, Miss Lina, it was sure nice of you to let me stick around," Shadow Xellos said happily from his seat   
between Filia and Amelia. "I can't wait to go on an adventure with all of you!"  
  
"Adventure?" Filia sputtered into her tea. "Ha! I'm going home, thank you very much…"  
  
"But our vacation's not over yet!" Gourry protested, snagging the last piece of meat off of his shadow's   
plate.  
  
"Oi, that's mine!" Shadow Gourry protested. He tried to grab something off of his counterpart's plate, but   
his arm movement was limited by Sylphiel, who was glomped onto him rather tightly.  
  
"Oooh, so buff. I *love* buff men," the shrine maiden purred.  
  
Lina raised an eyebrow at the girl. "Are you alright, Sylphiel? You've been acting kind of strange…"  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about," the violet-haired healer snapped, then resumed rubbing up against   
Shadow Gourry. "Yes… all mine… none for her…"  
  
Lina opened her mouth to speak, but Filia beat her to it.   
  
"This has been the most distressing vacation I've ever been on," Filia said. "I'd like to go back to work   
now." She rose from her chair. "I'm sure I'll see you all again," she nodded. "Until then…"  
  
Lina caught the dragon's eye. "Well, then, since you're going, I guess I can let out your little secret."  
  
"M… my… wh…"  
  
"Xellos?"  
  
The Mazoku popped into existence next to the sorceress. "Yes, Miss Lina?"   
  
Filia sighed miserably and collapsed back into her chair. "I'll never get out of this…"  
  
"Nevermind, Xellos…"  
  
"Surely a little vacation can't be that bad," the priest grinned as he phased next to the dragon. Filia began to   
growl. "What's this? Short-tempered, Little Dragon?"  
  
"Mister Not Shadow Me!" Shadow Xellos shouted, standing suddenly and knocking over his chair. "I shall   
not allow you to harass this dragon so!"  
  
Xellos blinked.  
  
"Surely she has the right to decide what she will do on her own terms! It's unfair to harass her s…"  
  
"Screw it," Xellos sighed. "I'll just go bug Zelgadis in the onsen later…" He disappeared.  
  
Filia stared after him, astounded. "Wow," she muttered, wide-eyed, "It's that easy to get rid of him?" She   
turned to Shadow Xellos. "That's it. You're with me from now on. I'll be Mazoku free in no time…"  
  
"So what are you going to do with the mirror fragments now that you have them, Lina?" Zelgadis asked,   
swishing the dregs of his wine around it his glass.  
  
"Huh? Oh, I dunno… where'd I put those?" she muttered, searching through her pockets. "I had them   
when I was at the circus with the shadows, and…" Lina's eyes widened. "THAT BITCH!"  
  
  
Shadow Amelia smirked. "Ebay. For all your hazardous and illegal auctioning needs," she said happily.   
"Now, let's see. 'One Enchanted Mirror Fragment. Create a shadow to do all of your dirty chores and   
destroy your enemies… great for parties! One… thousand… goldpieces." She put down the pen and the   
auction form and grinned. "I'm going to buy a nail gun!" she said to nobody in particular.  
  
She was going to be rich.  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
As my first foray into the Slayers-verse, Cracked! took me an ungodly amount of time to finish. Gack.   
Thanks to Davner for the circus bit, and thanks to WillZ for the falling-in-a-hole bit, and thanks to both of   
them for prereading for me. I'm sorry I sold Syl-chan to the circus, Dav…  
  
Questions, comments, and recipes for lamb kebob marinades can be sent to fish@fanfiction.net  



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